Top 10 Worst Crimes Committed by Black Metal Musicians

I would be interested in the take by members of this forum on this list. Considering these acts, how do you feel about black metal as a whole, more importantly the people behind the music? These acts impact on metal as a whole, etc. If these acts were done by posers and kids trying to be tr00 or whatever it would be different but here we are talking about the pioneers and prominent figures of black metal.

Sort of silly post no (or article, I guess)? Few of the crimes cited in your post are connected in any meaningful sense. Allen West was cooking meth but death metal musicians are not known for their chemical enterprising. #8 doesnt seem to fit, no crime there. The suicide of Dead does not either. The Leviathan crime; no relation to black metal, metal music, anything. Jef Whitehead is a tattoo artist too. Plus Leviathan does not have anything in common with the original black metal as far as principles and beliefs are concerned. Stalaggh is a gimmick and the mental patient shit is BS, untrue. I have never seen actual evidence of it, just claims and played up articles on music websites. The Nattramn assault is also a hoax as far as I know.

The ones with substance relate to the group of early Norwegians who were quite driven ideologically. This music does attract outsider personalities, some of whom may be a little more outsider. Why not attribute #3 to his homosexuality though ?

Overall, none of this stuff except church burnings has anything to do with black metal per se, and even those were the acts of few connected individuals. I thought they were rather stupid but I dont see why it would affect the music in any way. I dont listen to an artists criminal record. The murder of Euronymous does not merit discussion. This list is constructed to drive page views on a metal website, it has no rigour to it.

Overall, none of this stuff except church burnings has anything to do with black metal per se, and even those were the acts of few connected individuals. I thought they were rather stupid but I dont see why it would affect the music in any way. I dont listen to an artists criminal record. The murder of Euronymous does not merit discussion.

Alright but in the case of Mayhem's Dead, to cite one example, the whole act was turned by band members into something to market the band and exalt it's 'image', with them using that infamous picture as an album cover and Euronymous making necklaces out of pieces of Dead's skull. So it is not so clear cut to just say separate the people behind the music from the music, especially when there are people like Euronymous who hope that black metal incites people to spread misery to others (something which he and the arsonists felt the church burning accomplished).

Even some of the members from Mayhem were repulsed by Euronymous' actions.

Yeah but Euronymous made the music!

Yes...music which he asserted must be Satanic (as in theistic satanism, not the LaVeyan stuff) and drive his totalitarian ideology and help spread misery to others. it was not until his death that black metal sort of began to drop the ideological baggage, even tho there still are some who follow along the same trail.

Well, that is rather subjective but what has been with black metal from the start is the fact that the genre has always had an identity crisis. This is probably why it is such a broad and loosely defined genre, able to contain even the least metal bands imaginable (think the current crop of hipster atmospheric black metal and post-black metal bands that only pay lip service to the genre yet are considered part of it). Wether it is because of the decline in quality, the dissolving of the genre due to the excessive experimentation done by the post-second wave artist or the invasion of hipsters, black metal is largely a failed subgenre.